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History

Negotiations regarding the BCATP, between the four governments concerned, took place in Ottawa, Canada during late 1939. The Air Training Agreement (sometimes known as the "Ottawa Agreement" or the "Riverdale Agreement", after the UK representative at the negotiations, Lord Riverdale) was officially signed on 17 December 1939.

Under Article XV of the Agreement, graduates from Dominion air forces were to be assigned to squadrons either formed by their own air forces, or with a specific national designation, under the operational control of a local air force, in most cases the RAF.[1][2][3] These became known as "Article XV squadrons." In addition, Articles XVI and XVII stipulated that the UK government would be responsible for the pay and entitlements of aircrews trained under the BCATP. Nevertheless, these personnel and any squadrons formed for service with the RAF, under Article XV, would belong to the three Dominion air forces. This was largely an initiative of the Canadian Prime Minister, Mackenzie King, during the negotiations with Riverdale.[4]

During the war, 44 Canadian, 17 Australian and six New Zealand Article XV squadrons were formed. In practice – and technically in contravention of Article XV – most personnel from Dominion air forces, while they were under RAF operational control, were assigned to British units.[3] This was generally due to practical staffing considerations. Similarly, many of the Article XV squadrons contained few airmen from their nominal air force when they were first formed. However, by the end of the war this had generally been rectified.[5] Canada made a greater insistence on its airmen going specifically to RCAF operational units overseas, ensuring that the identity of its national squadrons was preserved. In January 1943 Canada was also able to form their bomber squadrons into a separate wholly RCAF formation within Bomber Command (No. 6 Group), commanded by a Canadian air vice-marshal. This was something the Australians and New Zealanders did not achieve.[3]

Several other RAAF and RCAF units, which were not covered by Article XV, were also under RAF operational control (see below). Initially, there was no cross-posting of personnel to or from these squadrons by the RAF and other Dominion air forces, although this requirement was relaxed later in the war.

The remaining dominion, South Africa, was not a signatory to the BCATP and the South African Air Force (SAAF) did not form any Article XV squadrons. However, South Africa provided training facilities for some Article XV personnel, and many SAAF units took part in the East African, North African and Italian Campaigns. Furthermore, as the war progressed, personnel from other Dominion air forces were transferred to SAAF units and vice versa, in North Africa, the Mediterranean and Italy.

No. 75 (New Zealand) Squadron RAF had a status similar to the Rhodesian squadrons, and was not officially an Article XV squadron, although it was staffed primarily by RNZAF aircrew during the war and was officially transferred to the RNZAF in late 1945.

However, most of the RCAF Article XV squadrons were formed overseas. Domestically the Home War Establishment of the RCAF, which consisted of Eastern and Western Air Commands, had at its peak 37 squadrons.

Following the end of the war and termination of the BCATP, the RCAF squadrons covered by Article XV retained their numbers. Furthermore, home-based, non-Article XV squadrons were renumbered in the 400-series. During an expansion of the RCAF in the early 1950s the numbers 444 to 449 were used,[citation needed] and – following the 1968 unification of the three service branches – a Canadian Army helicopter squadron became known as 450 Squadron (a name that overlapped the RAAF numbers).[6]

Royal Australian Air Force

Australia formed 17 Article XV squadrons, out of a total of 79 RAAF squadrons, during World War II. While 18 squadrons had been originally planned for service with the RAF, No. 465 Squadron was never formed.[1][7]

Royal New Zealand Air Force

On 17 April 1941, a secondary agreement was signed by the British and New Zealand governments, to form a total of six Article XV squadrons for service with the RAF, from RNZAF personnel.

The New Zealand Article XV squadrons and individual RNZAF personnel in RAF units (like their RAAF and RCAF counterparts) were equipped, supplied and funded by the UK government (see above). However, as a rule, the New Zealand government and RNZAF allowed the UK government and RAF to exercise operational command and administration control of the New Zealand Article XV squadrons. As a consequence, these units have become widely regarded in New Zealand as "RAF" squadrons and are usually referred to by names following the style "4__ (NZ) Squadron RAF". Nevertheless, the official emblems of the six New Zealand Article XV squadrons refer to them as "4__ Squadron, Royal New Zealand Air Force",[8] and some historians, such as Bill Gunston have referred to them similarly. As Gerard S. Morris explains: "although the squadron badges carried the name Royal New Zealand Air Force ... 485 Squadron was referred to informally as 485 (New Zealand) or 485 (NZ) and never as 485 Squadron, RNZAF (italics added)."[9] In New Zealand, only units controlled directly by the New Zealand government and operating entirely in the Pacific Theatre are regarded as "RNZAF" units.

No. 75 (New Zealand) Squadron RAF, a heavy bomber unit, was not officially an Article XV squadron although it was composed mainly of RNZAF aircrew and the entire unit was transferred from the RAF to the RNZAF following the end of World War II.

↑ 3.03.13.2Clark, Chris (2003). "The Empire Air Training Scheme". Conference website. Australian War Memorial 2003 History Conference – Air War Europe. Canberra: Australian War Memorial. Retrieved 2007-12-22.

↑See, for example: Robert Broughton Bryce, Canada and the Cost of World War II: the International Operations of Canada's Department of Finance, 1939–1947, Montreal/Ithaca, McGill-Queen's University Press (2005), pp47–51. Bryce quotes J. L. Granatstein, regarding British reactions to the Agreement: "The Chancellor of the Exchequer[Lord Simon] was gloomy, pointing out to the War Cabinet that he had sent no congratulatory telegrams after the signing of the [air training] agreement. He had not agreed that Canada could insist on unlimited units of the RCAF being provided at the expense of the United Kingdom taxpayer (p 50)."